Saving & Investing in New Zealand

Many of the "experts" say New Zealand has a low savings rate. State welfare has traditionally been blamed for undermining private savings rates.

Similarly the ability to borrow to invest in residential property and the subsequent tax effectiveness that can be generated from this have made the traditional savings pathways of bank deposits & super schemes look very second rate.

KiwiSaver

The savings landscape has been changed by the introduction of KiwiSaver and the inducements the Government is offering to people who join up.

If you would like to find out about KiwiSaver Scheme performance and to learn about the very few KiwiSaver Schemes that are actually getting good results get my free white paper that discusses my suggested strategy. CLICK HERE.

Workplace Superannuation Schemes

Recent Governments have added incentives not to save such as workplace superannuation and the Cullen Fund. The message the latter send is a very loud "don't worry we'll look after you" - so rational but ill-informed households dont worry and their savings rate plunges.

UK Pension Transfer

Transferring your pension from the UK can give a worthwhile end result, but there are a number of traps for the unwary. Many operations and advisors do not point out these traps because they are more interested in the fees they generate rather than giving you advice that benefits you. GO HERE TO GET THE PENSION TRANSFER GUIDE.

The Best Way to Save

I believe it is important that you save on a regular basis, and the ideal savings vehicle has the following features:

Can be set to happen automatically, no "budgeting" required.

Is low risk, but pays a top rate of return and compounds regularly.

Is not affected by the ups and downs of the share market.

Is easy to get your funds out - no "lock-in" requirement.

History Favours the Optimist

In 1937, Danish politician Karl Steincke quipped, “It is difficult to make predictions, especially about the future”.

While this statement is undoubtedly true, in today’s regulated world all traditional investments carry the even heavier disclaimer; past returns are not indicative of future performance.